Glossary
Airdrop
Free tokens distributed to wallet addresses, usually to reward early users of a protocol.
An airdrop is a distribution of free tokens to wallet addresses. Projects use it to reward early users, hand ownership to a community, and decentralise supply instead of selling everything to investors.
Most airdrops are retroactive: you qualify by using a protocol before it announces a token. Arbitrum, Optimism, Jupiter and LayerZero all rewarded wallets that had already been active for months. Nothing about it is a guarantee — most farms pay nothing.
Related terms
AMM
Automated Market Maker — a protocol that prices assets with a formula instead of an order book.
APR vs APY
APR is the yearly rate without compounding; APY includes compounding and is always higher.
ATH
All-Time High — the highest price an asset has ever traded at.
Bear Market
A prolonged decline, conventionally 20% or more from recent highs.
Bull Market
A prolonged rise driven by new demand, easy credit and rising confidence.
Block Explorer
A site for viewing every transaction, wallet and contract on a blockchain.